We come together to worship God, and we come together because we need each other.

“Love one another as I have loved you,” Jesus said.

Friendship is a gift given to us by God, and it compels us to reach out with care.

From now on, the Apostle Paul said, we regard no one from a human point of view…”

So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!

*Hymn #361 “O Christ, the Great Foundation”

Call to Confession

Prayer of Confession

Gracious God, forgive us, for too often we step into your role. We are quick to judge those around us. When someone wrongs us, our reaction is strong. When someone wounds us, our memory is long. Too often, we mistake revenge for justice. It is not our place, but it has become our practice — to add up accomplishments and subtract shortcomings, to determine who is good and who is bad. Be better to us, O God, than we have been to one another, and may your grace inspire us to change our ways.

Time for Silent Reflection

Response Hymn #392, “Jesus, We Are Here”

Jesus, we are here; Jesus, we are here;

Jesus, we are here; we are here for you.

Assurance of Forgiveness

Friends, believe the good news.

In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Passing of the Peace

As God through Jesus has recognized and forgiven each of us, let us now ourselves recognize and forgive each other by sharing God’s peace with one another. The Peace of Christ is with you!

Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

In celebration of Larry and Gay Wilson’s 50th wedding anniversary, please join them for cake and punch immediately following the service.

To Our Members and Guests: please sign our friendship pad.

For those of you with young children, please check out the shelf of children's Bibles located on the shelves in the Sanctuary. There are several different age-appropriate versions available for their use during the service. Please re-shelve them before you leave the building.

David Dark is the author of The Sacredness of Questioning Everything; Everyday Apocalypse: The Sacred Revealed in Radiohead, The Simpsons, and Other Pop Culture Icons; and The Gospel According To America: A Meditation on a God-blessed, Christ-haunted Idea. His latest book, Life’s Too Short to Pretend You’re Not Religious was recently released by InterVarsity Press. Following years of teaching high school English, he received his doctorate in 2011 and now teaches at the Tennessee Prison for Women, the Turney Center Industrial Complex, and Belmont University where he is assistant professor of Religion and the Arts in the College of Theology.

Welcome to East Brentwood

To Our Members: East Brentwood gladly welcomes first-time and returning visitors. By introducing yourself and sharing a warm greeting, you express the hospitality of our congregation. Please share a smile and welcoming word to those around you.

To Our Guests: We offer education and fellowship opportunities in the mornings and evenings for children, youth and adults. Please see the Calendar of Events for dates and times. Interested in joining East Brentwood? Speak to Dave Ford or John Hilley.

East Brentwood Presbyterian Church is a community church made up of a loving, welcoming family of believers in honest conversation with God. We seek to emulate the ministry of Jesus through compassionate service, with stimulating and relevant exploration of God’s Word, and by sharing that Word and God’s many blessings with our neighbors in Middle Tennessee and around the world.

Announcements

The Worship Team has "Summer Travel Worship Bags" available for each family to take home. As you vacation across the country, the world or right here in your own backyard, you can still keep faith formation going throughout the months to come. One of the items included in the bag is "Flat Jesus." He is meant to be decorated and then to accompany you wherever you and your family go. Take pictures, write a blog, etc. of how you are bringing Jesus to the communities outside the walls of EBPC. Then send them to Doug (ebpcoffice@comcast.net) to be included in our weekly e-blast or the EBPC Facebook page with a short description so that we can all have a glimpse of the adventures of your own "Flat Jesus."

Flowers & Fellowship Food Sign-up: Please consider signing up for flowers, fellowship food, or both in the coming months. Please sign up from our website or E-newsletter. If you have any questions, please contact Doug in the church office at ebpcoffice@comcast.net.

We are continuing to expand our Worship Teams to cover summer vacations and participants rotating off teams. If you would like to train to be an opener, closer, greeter/usher, Communion Server, acolyte or liturgist or you would like to help in a supporting role with the Sanctuary Guild and Worship Planning Team, please contact the Worship Planning Team Moderator Liz Beatty at aybeatty@comcast.net. Thank you to each person who has stepped up already to help!

EBPC

East Brentwood Presbyterian Church is a community church made up of a loving, welcoming family of believers in honest conversation with God. We seek to emulate the ministry of Jesus through compassionate service, with stimulating and relevant exploration of God’s Word, and by sharing that Word and God’s many blessings with our neighbors in Middle Tennessee and around the world.